Tag Archives: Mendonoma coast

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A choice, edible mushroom that *normally* blooms in the fall, usually in November, has fruited on the Mendonoma Coast. Cathleen Crosby had a half dozen pop up near her home in Gualala

This is exactly what you look for - a big, fat mushroom with a thick, white stalk and a brown cap. Under the cap is a sponge rather than gills. This mushroom is a joy to find and delicious to eat. Now I wonder what will happen when our fall rains begin. Will we get a normal bloom of King Boletes?

Our summer edible mushroom is The Prince, Agaricus augustus. It is blooming on schedule as Leslie Hoppe's photo shows you. The Prince often pops up near roads and trails. When it is young it tastes sweet and almondy; when older it tastes more "mushroomy."

Thanks to Cathleen and Leslie for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

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You'd expect to find Prince mushrooms on the Mendonoma Coast in summer. And, in fact, they are fruiting. But with the unusual heavy rain we received the end of June, we've have autumn mushrooms fruiting now - King Boletes, Chanterelles, a lone Sweettooth Hedgehog and several Cocorras. Now a Dyer's Polypore has fruited, at least a month earlier than normal. Is this the new normal? Time will tell. Nan Brichetto photographed this beauty Saturday in our forest in Anchor Bay.

This fungus helps the forest by decomposing dead wood. It is prized by dyers of yarn. When young, like this specimen, it dyes yarn yellow or orange. As the polypore ages it will dye yarn a warm brown.

Thanks to Nan for allowing me to share her photo with you here. I will enjoy watching this mushroom evolve and plan on sharing photos for you to see in the weeks to come.

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Rozann Grunig saw this Anna's Hummingbird feeding on Watsonia and captured this beautiful photo.

Anna's Hummingbirds are only found on the Pacific Coast. They are year round residents of the Mendonoma Coast. They weigh no more than a nickle.

When the sun hits the throat of a male Anna's, the beautiful iridescent reddish feathers are revealed. Craig Tooley's photo shows this.

Thanks to Rozann and Craig for allowing me to share their photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's photography, here is his website: www.ruffimage.com

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North American River Otters, Lontra canadensis, can only survive in unpolluted waters, a testament to the clean waters of the Mendonoma Coast. On our recent kayak trip, Rozann Grunig photographed a River Otter that had just climbed out of the Gualala River and onto the riverbank of the lagoon.

And below is a photo Siegfried Matull took of a River Otter with a fish in its mouth. 

Along with their favorite food, fish, River Otters have been seen cooperatively taking a Gull, or even a Brown Pelican, found resting on the river, unknowing there was danger.

River Otters have been seen playing - sliding down riverbanks or along kelp beds. They are part of the fabric that is the Mendonoma Coast.

Thanks to Rozann and Siegfried for allowing me to share their photos.

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Salmon fishing hasn't been this good in well over thirty years. Salmon - big ones - seem to be there for the taking. Commercial fishers and recreational fishers are having the best luck lately. It's heartening to know these fish are back in such abundance.

Jack Likins went out from Point Arena with two friends. Here's what he had to say: 
"Ken Bailey, Pat Killen and I went out salmon fishing yesterday.  We arrived at the Point Arena Pier at 7 am and were 8th in line for launching our boat.  By the time we got our boat in the water at 8 am there were already people returning with their limits of salmon.  We had our limit (2 fish per person) by about noon.  It seemed like almost all the returning boats were limiting out with big fish."
Here's a photo of Pat holding a 22 pound Salmon. What a beauty!
 
Thanks to Jack for allowing me to share his photo with you here.